Patriot Run #3 ~ Willow River Run 10K

     Returning from a week long vacation in Colorado at 11:30pm, gave the family a good excuse to not come with me the next morning for an early 10K race ten miles north of my home.  I don't blame them.  They've been supporting my crazy goals all along, I'll give them a brake ;-)  

One of my close friends met me in New Richmond, WI where the race would begin.  It was a cool, foggy morning.  I hadn't registered yet, because I didn't know if we would return in time from vacation.  I took care of that, then my friend & I began our warm-ups and stretching.  I grabbed Old Glory all wound up, just waiting to be unfurled yet again.  We began near the back of the pack, as it was our first 10K for both of us.  Knowing I was tired from all the traveling, I just wanted to enjoy the route and get my message out.

We chatted most of the way.  It kept my mind off of the fact it was a 10K.  Believe it or not, 10K's scare me.  I love 5K's, half marathon's, and of course love the challenge of a marathon, but 10K's for some reason scare me.  I think it's because it is run at a 5K pace, but twice the distance.  I've seen some amazing runners come in with some impressive times.  These Patriot runs, however, have a way of easing my mind of my own troubles, and getting me to focus on so much more important issues.

There weren't many spectators for this race.  It was early, it is a small town.  As usual, there were the runners who would pass us saying, "Good job! Thumbs up!" and "You get extra points for that!"  It is always humbling to hear a "Thank you," as a vet would pass by, for it is me that should be thanking them.  I sometimes clamor up my words because there is so much I'd like to say to them, but mostly I simply reply, "It is an honor."

Running past one of the water stations, the flag flapped one of the volunteers right in the face...oops!  "Sorry!"  I shouted back. They just laughed.  There were gusts of wind at times, but somehow, miraculously, the flag was not difficult to carry.  My friend held it for me for a few steps while I got a drink of water. (personally, I think she just really wanted to be apart of the patriot experience :)  We finished with a relaxed time of 54:43.

A couple of days later, a man from the New Richmond Newspaper called me to question me about my purpose of running with a flag.  We had a nice phone interview.  He thought it was pretty cool. ~ The following week, I was at Wal-Mart.  I looked down at the check out lane, noticing that a small picture of me had made the front page.  A smile crept onto my face knowing that the message was indeed spreading, and that little me could indeed make a difference.  And so, I continue to run...